The present invention constitutes a new and distinct variety of ground cover rose plant which originated from a controlled crossing conducted in spring 1990 between Bonica 82 and an unnamed seedling. The two parents were crossed and the resulting seeds were planted in a controlled environment. The new variety is named xe2x80x98POULbutxe2x80x99.
The new rose may be distinguished from its seed parent, Bonica 82, by the following combination of characteristics:
1. The seed parent has soft pink flowers which are 60 mm in diameter with 35 to 40 petals while xe2x80x98POULbutxe2x80x99 has light pink single flowers with 6-8 petals which are 35-40 mm in diameter.
2. The seed parent is bushy and somewhat compact, while xe2x80x98POULbutxe2x80x99 is a low growing ground cover rose with spreading canes.
The new variety may be distinguished from its pollen parent, an unnamed unpatented seedling created by the same inventors, by the following combination of characteristics:
1. The pollen parent has white, small, semi-double flowers in clusters, while xe2x80x98POULbutxe2x80x99 has light pink single flowers with 6-8 petals which are 35-40 mm in diameter.
2. One of the parents of the unnamed seedling is xe2x80x98POULcatxe2x80x99, a groundcover rose by the same inventors.
The objective of the hybridization of this rose variety for commercial greenhouse culture was to create a new and distinct variety with unique qualities, such as:
1. Abundant, light pink flowers;
2. A low growing ground cover rose with uniform growth and a spreading habit;
3. Glossy and disease resistant foliage which requires limited maintenance, making it ideal for use in landscapes; and
4. Good growth on its own roots as well as a traditionally budded plant.
This combination of qualities is not present in previously available commerical cultivars of this type and distinguish xe2x80x98POULbutxe2x80x99 from all other varieties of which we are aware.
As part of their rose development program, L. Pernille Olesen and Mogens N. Olesen germinated the seeds from the aforementioned hybridization and conducted evaluations on the resulting seedlings in a controlled environment in Fredensborg, Denmark.
xe2x80x98POULbutxe2x80x99 was selected by the inventors in the spring of 1991 as a single plant from the progeny of the aforementioned hybridization. Asexual reproduction of xe2x80x98POULbutxe2x80x99 by traditional budding was first done by L. Pernille and Mogens N. Olesen in their nursery in Fredensborg, Denmark in August, 1991. This initial and other subsequent propagations conducted in controlled environments have demonstrated that the characteristics of xe2x80x98POULbutxe2x80x99 are true to type and are transmitted from one generation to the next.